UNCSA alumni are nominated for Emmy Awards

Costume designer Paul Tazewell, an alumnus who spoke at this year’s University Commencement at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, is nominated for an Emmy Award. He is one of two graduates of UNCSA’s School of Design and Production who are nominated, along with a former faculty member in the School of Filmmaking.

Tazewell is nominated for Outstanding Costumes for NBC’s “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert.” In 2016, he won an Emmy for NBC’s “The Wiz Live!” and a Tony Award for “Hamilton.” He earned a bachelor’s degree from UNCSA in 1986 and was awarded an honorary doctorate this year. He frequently returns to campus as a guest artist, and this year he established a merit-based scholarship for undergraduate students of color in D&P.

In a career spanning three decades, Tazewell has been nominated for a total of six Tony Awards, has been nominated for an Olivier Award, and has received four Helen Hayes Awards, two Lucille Lortel Awards, and the Princess Grace Statue Award, among many others.

Also nominated is Tanase Popa, a 2006 D&P graduate in stage management, who is executive producer of an FX website short, “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story: America’s Obsession with Fame.” It is nominated for Outstanding Short Form, Nonfiction or Reality Series. Popa also is associate producer for the Versace television series, which is nominated for Outstanding Limited Series or Movie and several other awards.

Popa is a producer at Ryan Murphy Television and program director of Ryan Murphy's Half initiatives. He worked at Pixar Animation Studios on “Coco,” winner of an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, and has served as a Broadway and national touring company manager for “Wicked,” “Next to Normal,” “Sweeney Todd,” “Company” and “Gypsy.”

Additionally, former Film faculty member Ramin Bahrani is executive producer for HBO’s “Fahrenheit 451,” which is nominated for Outstanding TV Movie.

Several UNCSA connections worked on “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert,” which received 13 nominations, including Outstanding Variety Series. They include recent guest artist Brandon Victor Dixon, nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series; Camille A. Brown (Dance ’01), choreographer; Juel Lane (Dance ’12) and Shelby Finnie (Dance’13), ensemble; Ashley Rae Callahan (D&P ’12), Ashley Hughes (D&P ’14) and Kaylan Paisley (D&P ’08), hair department; Christina Grant (D&P ’04) and Amy Porter (D&P ’03), makeup department.  

Other UNCSA connections to nominated shows include:

Kris Baucom (Film ’99) is producer for HBO’s “Barry,” nominated for six awards, including Outstanding Comedy Series.

Tiffany Little Canfield (Drama ’00) is casting director and Vera Herbert (Film ‘11) is a writer and producer for NBC’s “This Is Us,” nominated for Outstanding Drama Series.

Steve Coulter (Drama ’81) and Joshua Morgan (Drama ’09) appear in HBO’s “Paterno,” nominated for Outstanding TV Movie.

Billy Magnussen (Drama ’07) appeared in Netflix’s “USS Callister (Black Mirror),” which is nominated for seven awards, including Outstanding TV Movie.

Evan Scott Russell (Film ’15) worked as a visual effects production assistant on Netflix’s “Altered Carbon,” which received two nominations, including Outstanding Special Visual Effects.

Adam Stone (Film ’99) is cinematographer for Netfilx’s “Wild Wild Country,” which received 5 nominations including Outstanding Documentary Series.

Meredith Hannah (Film ’13) was production assistant on Netflix’s “Stranger Things” nominated for Outstanding Drama Series.

Zoë White (Film ’04) is director of photography on Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” which received 20 nominations, including Outstanding Drama Series.

Tyler Cook (Film ’08) was an editor on Netflix’s “GLOW,” which received 10 nominations, including Outstanding Comedy Series. 

Dan Perry (Drama ’87) was a writer for A&E's “Intervention,” which is nominated for Outstanding Unstructured Reality Series.

Delaney Rath and Lorraine Volatier, who graduated from the Film School in May, and Scott Goldstein, a rising fourth-year student in Film, all interned last summer in the art department of truTV’s “At Home with Amy Sedaris” nominated for Outstanding Variety Sketch Series.

Mandy Patankin, an honorary doctorate recipient and guest artist, is nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for Showtime’s “Homeland.”

Additional alumni worked on nominated shows including “Brooklyn Nine Nine,” “Dancing With the Stars,” “Mozart In the Jungle,” Seven Seconds,” “So You Think You Can Dance,” “Vice Principals,” “13 Reasons Why” and “71^st Annual Tony Awards.”

The Creative Arts Emmy Awards, for categories including costume design, will be presented at 8 p.m.  Saturday, Sept. 15 on FXX. The Primetime Emmys will be presented at 8 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 17 on NBC.